26/11 Accused Rana Arrested In Delhi After Being Extradited From US

Photo: NIA

NEW DELHI (ANI) – India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) on April 10 formally arrested Tahawwur Hussain Rana, the key conspirator in the deadly 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, immediately after his arrival at Indira Gandhi International Airport, following his extradition from the United States.
Rana’s extradition comes after years of sustained and concerted efforts and after the terror mastermind’s last-ditch efforts to get a stay on his extradition from the US failed.
Rana was escorted to New Delhi by teams of the National Security Guard and NIA, comprising senior officials, on a special plane from Los Angeles.

The NIA investigation team at the airport arrested Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin living primarily in Chicago, soon after he emerged from the airplane after completing all the necessary legal formalities.
Rana, was being held in judicial custody in the US pursuant to proceedings initiated by the NIA under the India-US Extradition Treaty. The extradition finally came through after Rana’s various litigations and appeals, including an emergency application before the U.S. Supreme Court, were rejected with the active assistance of U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, U.S. Marshals Service, FBI’s Legal Attache Office in New Delhi, and U.S. Department of State’s Office of the Legal Adviser for Law Enforcement.
The Pakistani born Canadian Rana is accused of conspiring with David Coleman Headley and operatives of designated terrorist organizations Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami (HUJI), along with other Pakistan-based co-conspirators, to carry out the devastating terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008.

A total of 166 persons were killed and over 238 injured in the deadly attacks.
Security was beefed outside the NIA office at Lodhi Road in New Delhi. Delhi police put up barricades to avoid any mishap during the proceedings.
India has appointed Advocate Narendra Mann as the Special Public Prosecutor in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case. He will serve for three years or until the trial concludes, whichever comes first.
Between 2011 and 2019, Mann served as Special Public Prosecutor for the Central Bureau of Investigation at the Delhi High Court, handling major criminal cases, appeals, writ petitions, and corruption trials. His extensive experience includes high-profile matters such as the Medical Council scam, AICTE scam, Commonwealth Games cases, CGHS Societies scam, and banking frauds.